Hipster & Oceanwise: Sushi Itoga on Robson

At first glance, Sushi Itoga doesn’t look like your typical sushi eatery. The interior design is more like a hipster cafe: the space is bright and there is one large communal table. Although it seemed a bit awkward at first to enjoy sushi at a communal table, I quickly got over it. I was here for the fresh, affordable and Ocean Wise sushi. I dined at Sushi Itoga twice for lunch and here is a review of my experiences.

What I Tried

I’m a supporter of ocean-friendly seafood and was keen to try Sushi Itoga’s Ocean Wise features.

California Real Crab Maki Sushi ($7.50)

Alaska Maki Sushi ($7)

BC Maki Sushi ($4)

Spicy Tuna Maki Sushi ($3)

Philadelphia Maki Sushi ($5)

Uni ($3.50)

In general, the sushi tasted fresh and delicious. The Alaska was particularly good because I really enjoyed added textural contrast from the sesame sauce topping on the wild salmon.

While they offer the regular California roll with imitation crab, I much preferred having real crab meat in my sushi.

The BC and Spicy Tuna sushi were simple but tasty. The Philadelphia was my least favourite – cream cheese with wild salmon and rice just doesn’t taste good to me. I’ll pass on this next time.

Furthermore, I don’t think I’ll order uni (sea urchin gonads) again at any sushi restaurant. With its unique texture and taste, I think uni is a love it or hate it item. The uni at Sushi Itoga was firm, moist and retained a good shope, but it still didn’t look too appetizing appearance-wise. Perhaps it’s an acquired taste, but I just wasn’t enjoying it the smooth, wet, custard-like texture. It sure did taste like the ocean.